Realizing that he was no match for them at all, Grimmjow had no intention of resisting. After his injuries were healed, he cooperated with Tsunayoshi and the others, standing quietly to the side as he waited.
Once Tsunayoshi's group finished making their preparations, Kisuke Urahara opened a Garganta leading to Hueco Mundo.
Surprise flashed across Grimmjow's face. This was the first time he had ever seen a non-Hollow being able to control a Garganta. It made him abandon any thoughts of resistance even further.
In a world filled with gray sand, a jagged black opening split through space. Kisuke Urahara stepped out first. Grimmjow, the local, was instead being protected in the middle of the group.
Grimmjow was not stupid enough to make a move inside the Garganta. While they were passing through it, he could clearly feel a faint killing intent lingering around his neck. If he made even the slightest abnormal movement, his head would be separated from his body in the next instant.
"So this is Hueco Mundo? There really isn't much to see," Ichigo sighed.
Hueco Mundo had only night. A curved crescent moon hung alone high in the sky. Amid the endless gray sand, only the occasional withered tree stood in lonely silence.
"Well, sorry about that," Grimmjow snapped back.
From Ichigo and the others' conversation, Grimmjow had roughly figured out that Ichigo was relatively easy to get along with, which was why he dared to retort.
This was Hueco Mundo. Its scenery could be taken in at a glance. A traveler like Ichigo could sigh about it, but for Grimmjow and the others, from the moment they gained awareness, this place had always remained exactly the same.
"Enough small talk. Grimmjow, you should know where the Forest of Menos is, right? Take us there," Tsunayoshi said.
"The Forest of Menos? What are you going there for?"
Grimmjow asked out of habit, then immediately showed that he did not care.
"Forget it. It has nothing to do with me. Once I take you there, you'll let me go?"
"Of course not. You're our guide. How could one Forest of Menos be enough to show your value? Once you take us to Las Noches, you can do whatever you want."
Tsunayoshi gave him a promise.
Grimmjow silently calculated his chances of surviving after leading these people to Las Noches.
Judging from the tone these people used when they discussed things, they were clearly not on the same side as Lord Aizen. They made it sound nice, saying they were here to make a deal, but if things broke down, Las Noches would be the first to deal with him, the one who had led them there.
"Don't bother thinking about it. If you don't take us there, you'll die here right now," Tsunayoshi said, seeing through Grimmjow's little scheme at a glance.
"Tch."
Grimmjow's expression looked as unpleasant as if he had swallowed a fly. He really did not have anything to think about. He had no choice at all.
"Keep up. If you fall behind, that's not my problem."
"That won't do. Bakudō Number Four: Hainawa."
Two ropes of Bakudō shot from Urahara's hands and wrapped around Grimmjow's waist.
"What are you doing?" Grimmjow twisted his body. Although it did not affect his movement, no matter how he looked at it, it felt awkward.
"To ensure you guide us properly, I brought a little tool."
No one knew where Kisuke Urahara pulled out a small board from, but as Reiatsu was infused into it, the board rapidly expanded into a sled with six seats.
When Kisuke Urahara tied the two Hainawa ropes to the sled, there was no need for him to explain. Grimmjow immediately understood what this was for.
A dog sled?
Were they treating him like a dog?
"Please, Grimmjow-kun!"
Kisuke Urahara opened his little fan and sat on the sled with a sly grin.
The sound of bones cracking came from Grimmjow's body. Just as he was about to lose his temper, he saw Tsunayoshi sit in the very front seat. His anger immediately died back down.
Fine. If he had to pull the sled, then so be it.
His true form was a panther. Panthers were also four-legged animals. It was not completely unacceptable.
Grimmjow could only comfort himself like this.
Leaning forward, Grimmjow lowered his head and sprinted wildly in the direction he recognized. He had made plenty of enemies in Hueco Mundo, so he only hoped no blind fools would recognize him in this sorry state.
"Oh my, it's unexpectedly suitable."
Fortunately, Urahara's sigh was scattered into the wind, and Grimmjow did not hear it.
"Manager, you really know how to make reasonable use of everything," Tsunayoshi sighed.
Kisuke Urahara had clearly arrived in the World of the Living together with him, yet in such a short time, he had still managed to bring out a sled tool.
"It's only a small modification by Benihime," Urahara said, covering his mouth without explaining much.
In the underground space of the Urahara Shop, a large boulder had been smoothly sliced apart. This sled had been created by Benihime using materials gathered on the spot from that underground area.
What followed was a boring stretch of travel. It could not even be called sightseeing. Aside from the moving dead trees along the way proving that they were moving quickly, the scenery did not change at all.
The imagined scenario of random low-level Hollows coming to cause trouble never happened either. As Grimmjow ran, he constantly released his Adjuchas-class Reiatsu, afraid that some blind fool might see him in his miserable state.
Logically speaking, Tsunayoshi's group should have reached their destination just like that, simply and smoothly.
However, journeys often came with accidents.
"Aaaaaah—"
A drawn-out scream came from high in the sky, getting closer and closer.
Including Grimmjow, everyone looked up. In the unchanging night sky, something seemed to have appeared. A tiny green dot was hurtling toward the direction they were traveling.
Grimmjow's expression instantly changed.
No matter what that thing above was, judging by the sound it was making, it was not some mindless Hollow. At the very least, it was an intelligent creature.
That would not do.
If he let another Hollow see him like this, how was he supposed to keep living in Hueco Mundo?
Without the slightest hesitation, Grimmjow immediately changed direction. His speed increased by another notch. In any case, Tsunayoshi and the others' destination was the Forest of Menos. No one had specified that there was only one route to get there.
Grimmjow had calculated where the little thing above would land, but he had not accounted for what it would do.
The little creature, still in free fall, immediately noticed the sled changing direction on the ground.
Excitement and amusement rose in her heart. Golden light flashed in the little thing's eyes, and she shouted, "Super acceleration!"
Under the effect of her Reiatsu, she changed direction midair and plunged straight toward the sled.
Whoosh!
Boom!
Just as the little thing wished, she aimed at the fast-moving sled. However, her final landing point deviated slightly. She did not crash into the sled. Instead, she slammed headfirst into Ichigo's stomach and sent both herself and Ichigo flying into a nearby sand dune.
"Ow, ow, ow!"
When the dust cleared, Ichigo stood up while clutching his stomach. In his right hand, he was holding the little thing that had just attacked him.
It was an Arrancar about the size of a human child. She wore a green robe, had short green hair, and a bony half-mask on her head. A red horizontal marking crossed the bridge of her nose, and a scar extended from the broken edge of her mask down to that marking.
"Hey! Who exactly are you? Why did you suddenly attack me?" Ichigo held the little Arrancar up in front of him and questioned her.
Perhaps Ichigo's tone was a little too serious. After being questioned so suddenly, the little Arrancar seemed frightened. Tears swirled in her eyes, her mouth opened wide, and with a loud wail, she burst into tears.
"Wait, don't cry! Damn it, what am I supposed to do?"
Ichigo quickly put the little Arrancar down on the ground and crouched beside her with a troubled expression. He had not suffered any real injury, so he could not bring himself to truly get angry at a child.
"Tsunayoshi, help me!"
This had already become a habit. When in doubt, look for Tsunayoshi first.
"You're Nel-chan, right? Ichigo didn't mean any harm. He was only playing with you."
With the little Arrancar's iconic appearance, Tsunayoshi recognized her at a glance as one of the most popular Arrancar in Bleach: Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck.
After being comforted by Tsunayoshi, Nel immediately stopped crying and asked with a smile, "You know me?"
"My name is Tsunayoshi, and this is Ichigo. He really likes children. You two can become good friends," Tsunayoshi said, pointing at Ichigo.
Hearing Tsunayoshi's words, Ichigo felt that he might be saddled with some kind of troublesome thing in the future. But when he saw Nel turn toward him with a face full of expectation and curiosity, he could not bear to refuse. He could only soften his tone and start talking to her.
Before long, Nel had decided on her own that she and Ichigo were good friends. She clung tightly to Ichigo's leg and refused to let go.
Enduring the drooling brat on his leg, Ichigo asked Tsunayoshi, "What exactly is going on with this kid? Can there really be an Arrancar this small?"
Ichigo still understood the basics. Only after a Hollow reached a certain level of power would Aizen allow them to attempt Shinigamification. Yet Ichigo could not sense anything particularly powerful from Nel. She only seemed like a noisy, overly familiar little brat.
Tsunayoshi did not answer Ichigo directly. Instead, he turned to Grimmjow and asked, "Grimmjow, who gave Nel that wound on her head?"
Although Tsunayoshi had intelligence sent back from Sora Inoue, Sora had not written down every single detail. At most, Tsunayoshi knew that the Tres Espada had been replaced.
"Who else could it be? Nnoitra had disliked her for a long time. Then one day, she suddenly disappeared from Las Noches. I never expected the former Tres Espada to have turned into a brat."
"With her old personality, even if it hadn't been Nnoitra, some other Arrancar would have plotted against her sooner or later. The fact that she managed to keep her life is already pretty good," Grimmjow said disdainfully.
In Grimmjow's view, Nel's friendly personality was completely unsuited to surviving in Las Noches. Among the Hollows who had the chance to become Arrancar, how many had not gone through countless battles? Someone who disliked fighting was bound to be eliminated from the Espada.
"Nel was the Tres Espada? Stronger than that deadpan guy?" Ichigo asked in surprise.
He still remembered how powerful the Cuarta Espada, Ulquiorra, had been. Judging by numbers alone, Nel was actually stronger than Ulquiorra.
"In the past, she probably was. As for now, unless Nel recovers and they fight again, no one can know for sure."
Tsunayoshi was not entirely certain whether the Third or the Fourth was stronger. Judging from their portrayal in the anime, the current Tres Espada, Harribel, seemed far less impressive than Ulquiorra, the Cuarta.
However, Harribel would also become the future ruler of Hueco Mundo. Who was truly stronger could only be decided through an actual fight.
"This little thing is that strong?"
Ichigo still had no way to connect the drooling child on his leg with the word "strong."
"Orihime didn't come this time. Once she repairs Nel's injury, you'll understand."
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